According to the New Zealand online retailer Gameplanet Store, the Lost in Time set will be released in New Zealand on January 13. (Thanks to David French)

Outpost Gallifrey has a further batch of photos taken by Ian Golden including a brief set report (you can read it by clicking on the spoiler tag, but it has very little in the way of spoilers.)

Meanwhile, the Sun covered the filming yesterday with an article along with accompanying photo noting that Billie Piper and Christopher Eccleston were holding hands (although it's quite likely that it was part of the filming session.) TheWestern Mail also picked up the story and the Metro today ran a photo of the two as well.
Another small batch of photos from Cardiff. The first one is actually from several weeks ago during the filming at Cardiff's Temple of Peace with an unidentified alien; the others are from yesterday, including Christopher Eccleston having a laugh with the production team and the chairs he and Billie Piper are using. (Thanks to Mark Davies)

New series writer Mark Gatiss spoke to the Sunday Herald on November 7 about his series "The League of Gentlemen" and also about the new Doctor Who season forthcoming. "The Dr Who commission was another dream job somehow drafted into reality for Gatiss," the article says. "He loved the programme as a child, and hated it when it became an obscure self-parody." He discusses his Doctor Who novels (briefly) for Virgin and BBC Books, and also his screenplays for the BBV direct-to-video films "The Devil Of Winterbourne" and "The Zero Imperative" (which he notes are "not available" even though they actually are, on video!) He says that the new series is "a brilliant reinvention. ... IÆm not just saying that. Chris plays it straight, but fun. His seriousness is almost frightening, it makes The Doctor seem more alien, more like an innocent on Earth. When he tells you the world is going to explode, you believe it. ItÆs a wonderful part and a great piece of television. Very funny, very scary." Read the full article at the Sunday Herald site.

Outpost Gallifrey has obtained a new batch of photos from day photography done today (November 9) in Cardiff along Queen Street. Director Euros Lyn was on hand, as well as banners and signs stating "Henricks" which are tied into the first episode of the series; though rumors have said it might be pick-up shots (new footage or reshots), it's been pointed out to us that producer Russell T Davies, in his recent Production Notes in issue #349, noted, "Euros is juggling schedules (just to make life easier, one of his scenes from Block Two has been recorded in Block One, whole another will shift to Block Three.)" Chris Eccleston and Billie Piper were on hand for the filming. Click on each photo for a larger version. (Thanks to Mark Davies)

The new issue of Doctor Who Magazine has further details on the previously reported extras for the forthcoming DVD release of Horror of Fang Rock. The DVD commentary is by Louise Jameson, Terrance Dicks and John Abbott (Vince). 'Terrance Dicks: Fact and Fiction', produced by Keith Barnfather is an in-depth examination of Dicks' contribution, running to 35 minutes and including interviews with Christopher Barry, Barry Letts, Eric Saward, Paul Cornell and Terrance Dicks. 'Paddy Russell: A Life in Television', produced by Paul Vanezis is 15 minutes, interviews Russell, examines her career and features footage from her early television career. 'The Antique Doctor Who Show' is also included - the five-minute piece on collecting merchandise broadcast in November 1993 with Planet of the Daleks. Photo gallery, production notes also included on the disc.

There's been a recent flood of rumors and stories floating around the net the past two weeks, and in addition, the newest issue of Doctor Who Magazine (#350) has some further details. So, here's a quick rundown of the info that Outpost Gallifrey has heard:

Story Titles: Steven Moffat's two-parter (episodes 9 and 10), set during the Blitz, is currently called The Empty Childaccording to DWM. Both episodes of Aliens of London (episodes 4 & 5) will have episode-specific subtitles. There are other titles that have been rumored, but at this point none are confirmed (though the title The Unquiet Dead has been touted as a likely title for episode 3) and will likely change by time of broadcast.

Casting: For "Rose" (episode 1), Elli Garnett plays Caroline Finch; Adam McCoy plays her son. In "The End of the World" (episode 2), Yasmin Bannerman ("Red Dwarf" and "Cold Feet") plays Jabe. "The Unquiet Dead" (episode 3, tentative title) features Alan David and Eve Myles in unknown roles; Huw Rhys as Redpath; Jennifer Hill (from Russell Davies' "Mine All Mine") as Mrs. Peace. In "Aliens of London" (episodes 4-5), David Verrey (who's also been in "Red Dwarf") as Joseph Green; Basil Chung and Fiesta Mei Ling as the previously-reported "Chinese couple"; Morgan Hopkins as Sergeant Price; Eric Potts as Oliver Charles; Steven Speirs as Assistant Commissioner Strickland; Lachele Carl and Jack Tarlton as television reporters. Bruno Langley (as Adam Mitchell) appears in episodes 6 and 8; we believe this indicates that the broadcasting order for episodes 7 & 8 will be reversed (for reasons we can't disclose, sorry!) Nicholas Briggs, writer/producer who voices the Daleks for Big Finish, will be doing the same in the new series starting in episode 6 (and likely in episodes 12-13).

Production: Lowri Thomas is the Unit Manager; Patrick Begley is the Props Manager; Ian Richardson is the Sound Manager. Block four of production consists solely of episode 7, to go before the cameras in late November; block five will be the two-parter by Steven Moffat, episodes 9-10, and block six will be comprised of episodes 11-13. Block one (episodes 1, 4 and 5) is currently complete and is being edited.

Music and Sound: The current hope is to apparently use the Ron Grainer version of the theme tune in the series. Mark Ayres has remastered the TARDIS sound effect for use in the show, other familiar sound effects might crop up.

Broadcasting: The current word on the start date of transmission is the third or fourth week of March, although this is not completely set and will likely not be finally decided until the end of the year at the earliest. Nevertheless, it's likely to run from late March through the end of June. BBC Books is currently altering its schedule to accommodate. A second series is "by no means a done deal" and will depend on ratings, but there are plans being made for scripts for the second season prior to being commissioned. No word as yet on when this might arrive on television, but speculation is it would be the fall of 2006. The Doctor Who Confidential documentary series will likely not be on the DVD's; however, according to producer Phil Collinson, while "people won't have to wait for DVD extras to see how the show is put together ... we hope the DVDs will still have extras all of their own!"

Writing: Author Mark Gatiss is interviewed this week in the Guardian newspaper, mostly about his new novel but also briefly about his Doctor Who novels and his episode in the new series.

As Outpost Gallifrey announced yesterday, we have learned that the first two Doctor Who DVD releases in North America next year will be The Visitation starring Peter Davison (WHV catalog #E2157) and The Green Death starring Jon Pertwee (WHV catalog #E2156). The two DVDs are due out from Warner Home Video/BBC Video on March 1, 2005 (we reported February 1 yesterday, but that's the order date for retailers; March 1 is the "street" date.) Both DVDs have the same extras as the UK version except for the addition of the "Who's Who" standard segment on US/Canada releases. The full cover illustrations are below; click on each for a larger version.

The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) has issued the following data about the extras for the forthcoming DVD release of Horror of Fang Rock in January 2005 in the UK. The extras include:


Additionally, we've learned that the commentary for The Mind Robber will likely feature Frazer Hines (Jamie), Wendy Padbury (Zoe), director David Maloney and actor Hamish Wilson (who played the 'other' Jamie in the story). Hines told Outpost Gallifrey that the recording of the commentary would take place at some point this week.

Today's Western Mail (repeated on icWales) features a news story about the filming of the sixth episode of the new series... and involvement of local police. "Police were alerted yesterday after Daleks were involved in a shoot-out with armed guards," according to the report. "Gunfire and explosions could be heard for miles around as the filming for the new TV series of Dr Who went off with a bang. Police had a series of calls from passers-by who thought an armed robbery was going on in Cardiff city centre. But the noise was from the special effects on the set of the cult time-travelling show." A BBC spokesman told the Mail that police were aware that the filming was happening at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, but that locals had not been informed. "The battle scenes are very realistic and that means the use of hazardous explosives," said a BBC representative. Meanwhile, news reports continue about the photos of the Daleks leaked first by the Sun and then across the Internet (as we reported yesterday, with photo display.) The Registerdiscussed the leak of the photos (including mentioning this website in its report.) (Thanks to Chuck Foster, Paul Engelberg, Steve Tribe, Paul Hayes)

Cameo appearances by former Doctors appears to be a non-option, according to reports over the weekend in the UK Teletext and in the Daily Mail. "[Tom Baker] has said in the past that he'd love to appear as the Time Lord's arch-enemy The Master in the new run," the Mail reports. "But [executive producer Russell T] Davies says: 'I toyed with the idea of giving Tom and Colin [Baker] cheeky little cameo roles as a bit of fun. However, even though I admire them both very much, it won't be possible. I thought that if they appeared, it would distract viewers and affect the freshness of the new series.'" The Teletext also features a comment from Davies about the casting of Christopher Eccleston: "A lot of people have told me they think Christopher, superb though he is, is a fairly dry and dour actor. They are in for a bit of a surprise. There's a lot of humour and comedy in that man, and the new series will prove what a light touch he has." (Thanks to Phil Newman, David Rafer, Paul Engelberg)